Migration, A Survival Strategy:Case of Brick Kiln Workers in Barak Valley, Assam

Abstract

Migration is a natural phenomenon. In view of the major
changes in the availability of employment in the rural areas, people
often migrate from rural to urban areas in search of source of livelihood.
This situation coupled with poverty has pushed people into miserable
conditions. The migrant workers do not possess the skills or the
education to enable them to find better paid, secure employment in the
formal sector and they have to settle for work in the informal or
unorganised sector. This paper discusses the condition of migrant
labourers engaged in brick kilns in Barak Valley of Assam. It examines
the various factors for their migration and addresses the issues of
migrant workers and their problems. It was found that under difficult
conditions they migrated as a means for survival during lean season
often with their family members including children. They work under
very hazardous conditions. The facilities provided at the kiln sites are
far from satisfactory. Safety measurers are hardly met. Both the
government and non-government agencies should come forward with
effective programmes to improve the situation of the migrant labourers.